Hundreds of children, including this little otter, took the plunge at several pools in the World’s Largest Swimming Lesson on June 18 in Windsor, Ont. The global event was meant to combat drowning. (POSTMEDIA NEWS FILES)

With the weather warming up, British Columbians are seeking out bodies of water to stay cool or to have fun. As with every summer, this leads to a tragic increase in drownings, which are way up in B.C. this year compared to 2012. Since January, 36 people in B.C. have drowned — well up from the 20 who died during the same period last year, according to the Lifesaving Society.

The most recent drowning was a four-year-old Cowichan Bay boy who passed away after being found unresponsive in an above-ground pool on Sunday. Drowning is the No. 1 cause of unintentional injury death in Canada among children aged one to four, says the society. Every case is a profound, terrible tragedy.

We have done well in Canada to reduce drownings, which hovered just under 700 a year in 1990 but in recent years have been under 500. But two groups continue to die with greater frequency — kids under five who normally can’t swim and risk-taking men aged 18 to 49.

Preventing drownings is easy: put fences around pools, watch your little ones near water, learn to swim, wear life-jackets and don’t take unnecessary risks. By being safe around water, we can make drowning a much rarer event.

Editorials are unsigned opinion pieces that represent the views of The Province editorial board, a group of senior editors.

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